


Pirate!Ateez Series

by ateezinutopia



Category: ATEEZ (Band)
Genre: Pirates
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-25
Updated: 2019-10-01
Packaged: 2020-07-19 20:57:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 16,989
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19980397
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ateezinutopia/pseuds/ateezinutopia
Summary: Not edited. I deeply apologize, but I'm lazy and that's a lot of words.





	1. Pirate!Wooyoung

**Author's Note:**

> Not edited. I deeply apologize, but I'm lazy and that's a lot of words.

Shouts, screams, and wails of pain. Your eyes widen at the sounds and you nearly drop the needle in your hand. Glass shattering, feet pounding against the ground, the echo of gunshots. Your fingers shake at the thought of chaos happening just outside the door and your sewing becomes inconsistent, the pattern essentially broken. It’s the rebels; it has to be. Why else would there be gunshots? At the moment you catch the scent of smoke in the air and you can picture the sight of their flag waving through the flames they created. 

They’ve only visited your village once before. You figured it was because it’s so small and insignificant that there was no reason to leave their mark here more than once, but apparently, you were wrong and you bite back a smile. You’ve been waiting for them to return since you watched them wreak havoc the first time, but by the time you caught sight of their ship they had already been leaving. Disappointment was not enough to describe what you felt as you watched them sail away - free - before your father had pulled you back inside.

You prick your finger, bringing yourself back to the present and you hiss. But you continue threading the needle through the shoulder of your father’s shirt where a hole had appeared after he drunkenly fell off the couch. He catches sight of your shaky work and scoffs, smacking your face roughly with the hand that isn’t currently occupied with a bottle of whiskey. Tears of shock and pain well up in your eyes and clench your jaw taking a deep breath and focusing on the sounds outside your pathetic excuse for a house. 

You think back to all the times he’s acted like this, and worse, realizing your dream of joining the rebels can be achieved and this may be your only chance. You choose your freedom and stand up, knocking your stool back and leaning in close to your father’s face with a look of disgust from all the years you’ve spent with him. 

“Don’t you ever lay another hand on me!” You spit into his face, moving to walk past him and toward the door. You pray that the rebels take you in because there’s no going back now. If they deny you, you’re dead; simple as that.

Your father wraps his hand around your arm, pulling you toward him roughly and practically growling. “How dare you speak to me that way.”

You try to pull away, but his grip only tightens. You glance at the door, deciding that if you’re going to risk your life for your only chance at freedom that you might as well go all the way. Turning around quickly, you lift your hand and stab the needle into the area you were previously sewing. You push it in as far as it will go with your strength and try not to think about how terrible it feels as your father shouts in pain and cradles his shoulder. 

You push him away from you and run toward the door, swinging it open and watching as people run around frantically, trying to avoid the rebels. If everyone is running in one direction, then the rebels must be in the other. You push through the crowd of people, elbowing anyone in your way and moving as fast as you can toward the dock.

The smoke smell is stronger and it stings your eyes, but you blink through the pain and continue moving forward. You hear a familiar voice through the chaos and look over to see your father angrily waving his bottle around as he chases after you and your heart begins to race at the thought of having to go back home. Suddenly you’re stopped by a body and you turn, ready to push past them, but you notice the familiar symbol that appears on their flags. A rebel!

You look up and lock eyes with a man not much older than yourself - which surprises you - but you're more surprised by his looks. He looks nothing like what you imagined a rebel pirate to look like, but at this point, you don’t care, the most important thing is staying alive. He grips your upper arms, moving you to the side, but you grab onto his coat roughly.

“No, wait, please. I want to join the rebels; I want to sail as a pirate. Please,” you ramble, basically begging him on the spot. Though you’re unsure how else you would become a rebel.

He stares at you for a moment, taking in your appearance and likely writing you off as unimportant. “We’re not in the market for recruits.” He begins pushing you away again, but you grab onto his coat with all the strength you can muster and pull him towards you with desperation in your eyes. For a moment he seems alarmed by your intensity, so you use it to your advantage.

“Please, I’ll do anything. I’ll scrub the deck. I’ll sleep on the floor of the lowest deck or in a cell. I’ll be a cook. I’ll do anything, I just want to be a rebel, I need to leave the village.” You hear your father’s shouts and rants coming closer and you know this is your only chance. Tears begin to fall, though you hoped you wouldn’t cry during such a serious moment. 

You search him with your eyes for a moment and point at his gun. He stares at you with a look of indifference at your outburst, but you can see the confusion peeking through. “What?”

“If you’re not looking for recruits, then shoot me.” He looks alarmed by your words, so you continue. “Shoot me. I know you kill people, so shoot me. Please. If I can’t escape, then I’d rather die by the hands of the people I’ve always dreamt of joining as opposed to my father who is on his way to kill me.”

You motion over your shoulder to your father who is quickly approaching, as angry as ever. The man’s eyes flicker behind you before settling on your face, noticeably darker than before. He pulls you toward him roughly and spins you around so your back is against his chest. One hand is wrapped around your arm tightly and the other grabs his gun, lifting it to your temple and resting it there.

A sob racks your body and tears begin falling faster. The cold metal feels like it’s burning your skin, rendering you immobile. Your father stops in his tracks a few feet away from you and the rebel, watching the two of you through his usual haze. The rebel pushes the gun further into your temple and you whimper, accepting your fate and wishing things had gone differently.

“No use, standing around,” the rebel states, addressing your father with a sneer. “She’s as good as dead, so stop staring and go back inside.”

Your father stands in a confused daze for a moment before grunting and waving his hand at the two of you. “Only wish I could have done it myself,” he grunts before hobbling away, never looking back.

You let one last sob fall from your lips, expecting those to be the last words you hear. But as soon as your father is out of sight, the rebel drops his gun, holstering it and turning you back around. He searches your face, for what you’re unsure, before quickly swiping his hands over your face and sighing. 

His eyes sweep the area before dragging you along with him. You do your best to keep up with his quick strides, but he’s a lot more graceful on his feet, avoiding rocks and rubble without a second glance.

“Wait, what?” You question, barely catching yourself from tripping. 

He grunts and pulls you along faster, toward the docks. Your eyes widen and you notice his jaw clench. “I can take you to the ship and I can ask the captain to speak to you, but I cannot promise he’ll agree to see you and I absolutely cannot promise that he will allow you to join the crew. If he does not allow you to join, you can either remain here or request to be dropped at our next location, if the captain sees fit,” he explains, stopping right before we reach the dock. “Do you understand?”

You glance at the massive ship, filled with men and a couple of women running to and fro, preparing to sail once again. The flag waves effortlessly, proudly exclaiming their presence to the world, the orange lettering standing out against the black. You swallow, willing to at least settle with moving to a new place without your father if you aren’t accepted as a rebel. 

You give the rebel a simple nod. “Yes, I understand.”

He lets out another sigh, letting you know that he’s not sure about his decision to bring you aboard, but he drags you with him nonetheless. The closer you get the more your mind runs wild, imagining all the ways you could be denied. Will the captain be understanding? Not likely. Will he kill you? Take you out in the middle of the ocean and throw you off his ship? The ways this could go terribly wrong for you are endless, but you swallow your fear and let the strange man guide you onto the ship.

He stops in the middle of the deck, releasing your arm and looks around. “Wait here and don’t move.”

You nod and fold your hands in front of you, staring ahead and avoiding the gazes of the inquisitive crew passing around you. You stare at the rebel’s back as he moves across the deck swiftly, the crew parting for him as he walks. He must be important, especially if he brought you on board without any fear of the captain; maybe they’re close.

You wait patiently, even as the crew begins passing by you closer and closer, more interested in their jobs, then whether or not they’re bumping into you. The rebel is nowhere to be seen, so instead, you focus on the smell of the salt in the air, the sound of the waves crashing against the shore, the cool breeze against your skin. You focus on anything, except the pounding of your heart and the nauseous feeling beginning to arise. 

Minutes pass and eventually the rebel is making his way back to you. He grabs your arm once again and leads you to the front of the boat. There is a group of men circled around the shortest one stood in the middle and you swallow as the rebel brings you closer, stopping a few feet away from the group. They all turn to stare at you, taking in your appearance. You must seem pathetic, but at this point, you can’t bring yourself to care.

The man in the center of the group - presumably the captain - turns around slowly, pulling his sword from its holster. You straighten your spine, keeping your eyes forward and slowing your breathing to appear both rational and respectful, but suddenly the motion of the boat makes you want to throw up. The captain walks toward you slowly, keeping you anxious and tense as he nears you, lifting his sword to point directly at your chest.

He stares at you, remaining silent for so long, too long. Your neck quivers as you struggle to take shallow breaths to keep your chest from rising and meeting his sword. A strangled gasp leaves your lips and the captain tilts his head. You catch sight of the rebel who brought you aboard leaning against the edge looking rather bored with the situation and he sighs loudly, pushing off the rail to move forward. 

He stops a breath away from you and eyes the captain. He looks at you and sighs again. “Breathe normally before you pass out.”

You take a deep breath, doing your best to keep your chest from meeting the sword. The captain watches you closely. “You want to join my crew, little one? Hmmm? And what makes you think that I should let you? What good would you be on a rebel pirate ship?”

You take another deep breath. “I-I’ve always wanted to become a rebel, but you’ve only visited my village once when I was young and I have not had a chance since. I believe I can be an important crew member and I can do whatever is necessary.”

The captain chuckles, circling around you. “Important? That’s a strong word to use when describing yourself. Have you ever even stepped foot on a ship?”

You can feel his belittling gaze on the back of your head as the sword lightly grazes your shirt. “No, but every person on this ship has at one point in their life have never been on a ship. Everyone starts somewhere, so why should I be denied a chance to work as your crew and fight for your cause just because of a lack of skill in a particular area? I can be useful in many other things aboard the ship.”

The captain raises his brow at you, his sharp eyes picking you apart from top to bottom and you can tell he’s testing you. This is all a test, but you have no idea how you’re doing so far. He moves closer, his sword following suit, except now it’s in front of your throat, one move away from killing you. Sweat trickles down the back of your neck and your spine, but you remain still. The rebel’s face remains impassive, but you can feel his body tense beside you.

“My crew - from my right hand man to the men and women that work on the lowest deck - we are a team, a family and I will not allow anyone to board this ship that has intentions to be anything other than that. Are we clear?” His eyes bore into you as he waits.

“Does that mean you’re letting me join?”

“It means I’m giving you a chance to prove yourself before we reach our next village, but if you show me you won’t make it or can’t work as a team and a family, then you will be dropped off at the village and we will leave it at that. Am I clear?”

You nod quickly. “Yes, clear as the blue sky above us.”

He watches you for a moment longer and it’s like the world has frozen before he removes his sword and slides it back into its place at his hip. “We better be,” he says before stepping back and disappearing down the steps to the main deck.

You finally feel like you can breathe, leaning forward to gasp for air, but as soon as you do, all the nausea hits you at once and you race to the edge of the ship. You lean over and vomit off the side of the ship, your body shaking and your body barely balancing over the side. Someone comes up behind you and holds you steady so you don’t tip into the water below. Their hands are warm and firm as they hold you in place and they help you to focus your mind on something other than having both a gun to your head and a sword to your throat within half an hour. 

You spit a few times before wiping your mouth with the back of your hand and pursing your lips against the bitter taste left over. You tap the person’s hand and they help steady you on your feet as you turn around. The rebel stands beside you, keeping his straight face, but he’s watching you like a hawk.

Your eyes find the rest of the men, except the captain, standing in the same spots, watching as you expose how weak you truly are. Their expressions and body language give nothing away, a common occurrence around here apparently, and you drop your gaze.

“Let’s go. I’ll show you where the women stay,” the rebel says, grabbing your arm once again and leading you from the front deck back to the main deck.

He gives you an assigned bed and tells you that tomorrow you’ll start with whatever the captain assigns you and that dinner starts when the bells ring. You nod at him and he sighs, squatting in front of you and placing his hand on yours. 

“You’ll be fine. Don’t slack off and listen to his orders and it’ll almost seem easy,” he assures you.

You nod again and lift your head to meet his eyes. “Why?”

“Why what?”

“Why didn’t you kill me? Why did you bring me when you seemed so hesitant?”

“We all started off somewhere. We weren’t born and raised on the ship. We didn’t start off as pirates, not all of us at least. Most of us had lives before, but for individual reasons we chose to seek the rebel pirates. We chose to join Ateez in order to escape our lives, better our lives, find a place in the world. Everyone has different reasons, everyone has a backstory, and mine is similar to yours. Bad family life, so I left and joined the pirate life.”

You listen to his words carefully, his eyes holding passion and intensity that makes you hold your breath until he continues. 

“I gave you a chance because I was once in your position and I would have killed to have someone on my side at the beginning. I decided to be that person for you. Don’t waste it,” he informs you and you swallow.

“I won’t.”

He stands to leave, the lack of warmth from his hand leaves you suddenly cold. As he turns to leave you grab his hand, and he glances at you curiously over his shoulder. “What’s your name?”

He blinks a couple of times, tilting his head with a slight smirk. “Jung Wooyoung. Friend of the captain, best shot on this ship, and one of the leaders of Ateez - one of the many branches of the rebels. I can be a friend, and if everything goes right, you can be part of the family on board, but don’t mess this up. I can promise it won’t end well for you.”  
And with that, he disappears, closing the door behind him and leaving you to contemplate his words in the dim light of the small room. You curl up in the bed and stare at the wall across from you, listening to the sounds coming from the deck above you. 

You let the tears fall freely, no one around to judge you. You savor the feeling of releasing your pent up emotions because you won’t get opportunities like this from now one; not in this lifestyle with these people. You have to show them you’re strong; that you can handle this lifestyle and everything it has to offer because this is the only chance you have at a new life. Just like Wooyoung said: you can’t mess this up.

\-------------------------------

You sleep better than you have in years. No fits of rage or shouting from your father. No reason to worry or sleep with one eye open. You sleep until someone shakes you awake, pulling the thin blanket from your body. Your eyes flutter open, adjusting to the darkness and taking in your surroundings quickly before sitting up, rubbing your eyes to clear your vision. The person clears their throat, grabbing your arm and pulling you up quickly. 

“Captain doesn’t like when people are late to breakfast because it means they’ll get a late start to work.”

You recognize the voice immediately as Wooyoung’s and quickly steady yourself as he gets you on your feet. You yawn and trip over your feet as he leads you out of the door. He’s all business as usual and you glance down at where his hand still holds your arm. 

“You don’t have to keep holding my arm,” you say, trying not to sound rude.

He drops your arm with nothing but a hum in response. You reach up to run your hands through your hair and do your best to fix the bedhead you’ve acquired, but you doubt that did much. The walk is silent and your fingers tap against your leg to distract you from how uncomfortable and awkward you feel. 

Eventually you reach, what you can only assume is, the dining hall and you freeze when eyes begin to turn toward you. They lose interest quickly, returning to their conversations and you take a deep breath. Wooyoung places his hand on your back and begins lightly urging you to move forward, leading you to get your trays of food and sit down.

You glance around, admiring the space of the room and the fact that it can fit so many people. For a moment, you’re surprised that there are so many people aboard one ship. You never thought this many people would be a part of one crew and stay together on a ship while they sail the ocean. You also think about how little of the rebels on this ship actually raid the villages, only about five to eight rebels are reported to be involved in the raids. Sometimes more depending on the size and the amount of people. 

Wooyoung takes your arm once again, pulling you to a long table at the front of the room, seating seven men, including the captain. Your eyes widen and when you reach the table you bow quickly, avoiding eye contact. Wooyoung pushes you to sit down next to one of the men you recognize from yesterday before taking a seat on your other side. The men stare at you and you keep your head down, staring at your tray of food.

You lean over to Wooyoung who is devouring his food. “Why am I sitting here? This doesn’t feel like a place for me,” you whisper softly, trying not to attract more attention.

Wooyoung glances at you while continuing to eat, furrowing his brows at you. “Why? If I brought you here, then clearly you’re allowed to be here.”

You sigh and shift closer to him, nearly sitting on the edge of your seat so you can create as much space as you can between the rest of the table and yourself. “Switch seats with me, please.”

He looks at you, confusion evident on his face. “Why? Yeosang is a nice guy, he won’t bite I promise, if anything, I’m usually the biter,” he whispers back, giggling at his words and giving you a wink that makes your cheeks heat up. 

“Whatever,” you mumble, turning back to your food and staring at it while everyone around you talks and laughs, enjoying their time with one another. You remain on the edge of your seat, one leg crossed over the other to take up the least amount of space possible and stay as close to Wooyoung as you can get without sitting on his lap.

You keep your hands in your lap, unmoving and intertwined. Your eyes are glued to the tray of untouched food, not daring to glance up and accidentally make eye contact with anyone else. Wooyoung is a stranger to you, but he’s also the only one you’ve actually talked to beside your incident with the captain and he gave you a chance at life and took you onto the ship. You owe him everything and you intend to repay him in anyway you can, even if it means becoming his right hand and being glued to his side like a lost puppy, which you seem to be succeeding at so far. 

It’s like he knew you were thinking about him because he suddenly dips his head down to peek you at you as he chews on his food loudly. He lifts an eyebrow as if to question you, but you simply drop your gaze again to stare at the food. Wooyoung swallows the food in his mouth, then reaches in front of you to grab your spoon, scooping up some of your meal. At first you think he’s going to start eating it, but to your complete and utter shock he lifts the spoon to your lips and holds it there. 

Your lips part in surprise and he nudges the spoon closer to your mouth, motioning for you to eat it. He waits patiently as you process his actions, watching you with his regular impassive gaze while he eats his roll from his other hand. You open your mouth and he gently pushes the spoon past your lips. When you close your mouth around the spoon he pulls it out and scoops more food onto it, waiting until you’ve finished chewing and swallowing to lift it to your mouth again.

“Why are you feeding me?”

“I’ll answer that question if you eat this bite,” he counters, taking another bite of his roll. Your lower lip pushes out, pouting slightly at his request and he taps the spoon to your lip, shaking his head. “No, no. You better stop that right now because if you want to stay on this ship and work on this ship, then pouting won’t do you any good.”

You huff and open your mouth so he can slide the spoon in once again and repeat his actions from before. His patience is like nothing you’ve ever seen before, especially living with your father, and your heart warms at the care he’s putting into feeding you each and every bite. Even when you struggle to get the food down, fighting against the sea sickness, he hands you your cup of water and waits for it to pass before feeding you the next bite. 

“I’m feeding you because you didn’t show up to dinner last night - I’m assuming it’s because you feel asleep - and if you’re going to be working on this ship and eventually training, because it is mandatory as a rebel, then you’ll need your energy. And if you’re not going to feed yourself, then I’ll be doing that for you. I brought you on this ship, so you’re under my care and if you’re under my care then you won’t be starving.”

The passion and honesty in his voice makes you flinch, jerking your head back. Tears sting at your eyes and your throat feels tight. No one has ever said anything like that, not since your mother died at least. You haven’t received sincerity or care from anyone like this for as long as you can remember and the feeling it produces is euphoric; like nothing you’ve ever felt before. You feel noticed and significant.

Wooyoung shakes his head again, leaning closer to your face to whisper, “Don’t do this. Crying won’t get you anywhere, not on this ship. Save it for your alone time, trust me.”

You nod and accept the next bite he offers you, swallowing the tears with the food. You revel in his kindness in silence and stare up at him with stars in your eyes, admiring everything he does.

\----------------

This is how you survive and learn how to live and work on the ship over the next few weeks. Under Wooyoung’s care you become more comfortable with the crew and the ship, learning the way everything works and more about the people. You formally meet the “higher-ups” as the crew calls them, Wooyoung’s friends and the closest circle of people to the captain, who you’ve learned is Captain Hongjoong of the Ateez. 

You’re not around any of them that often because you’re busy working or with Wooyoung, but when you do speak to them, usually at meals, you enjoy your time, learning that they’re not as intimidating as you had originally assumed. In fact, you’ve grown closer to a few of them, Yeosang, Yunho, and Jongho, but not nearly as close as you’ve grown with Wooyoung. The two of you are nearly inseparable when neither of you are busy. 

You spend more time in his room, then you do in your bed - talking, whispering, laughing, telling stories, sleeping. It’s easier for you to fall asleep when he’s beside you, his warm body providing a comfort you’ve never had before and one night he tells you he feels the same. He grew up in an awful household with no caring family and basically raised himself, missing out on the love and care of a family until he joined Ateez, of course. He tells you all about running away with Yeosang and joining Ateez and how it changed his life, giving him a second chance. 

He tells you all about his adventures in Ateez and how they’ve become his new family. You both share stories about your childhood and all the struggles you’ve been through, sometimes holding each other and shedding tears silently until you fall asleep in each other’s arms. Wooyoung still cares for you and makes sure that you’re eating and comfortable and you bandage him up after a raid and cuddle him when he wakes up from nightmares throughout the night. 

You two have found peace and comfort in one another, bonded over the absence of family in your lives and the chance at happiness you’ve found in joining Ateez. Sometimes you have doubts that you’ll make it as a rebel and a pirate, but Wooyoung reassures you that you have him and the crew and the captain behind you now and you don’t have to go through anything alone anymore. 

It seems like all is going well in the world and you begin to love living on the ship. You start seeing the boys and the crew as family and you enjoy waking up every morning to work on the ship, whether it be cooking in the kitchen, cleaning the deck, or organizing, you loved it all. The only downside was the fact that you’re terrible at training with weapons and learning how to fight.

No matter how often the boys tried to teach you a move or how to use a weapon you just couldn’t learn. Many of the boys get frustrated and quit because they can’t spend hours teaching one moves, they have other things to take care of, so you either work on the move yourself for hours and hours or Wooyoung will stay with you and try to help. You’re more than grateful for his patience with you and your struggle to learn the physical side of being a pirate. 

Today is one of the day’s you’re struggling to learn a move that Jongho had showed you and explained countless times. It’s been hours since you started working on it, but you just can’t get it right and now there is no one to correct you if you’re wrong or tell you that you finally have it down. The entire crew has left for a raid on a city - the first one since you’ve been on the ship - and you’re completely alone, practicing by yourself. 

You’re worried about them, of course, having heard the stories of city raids and how they’re the most difficult and dangerous and not everyone may make it back uninjured or even alive. But you’re more disappointed that you’re still not trained enough to join them on the raid because you’re so slow with learning everything. Though they probably still wouldn’t have let you go on such a large, dangerous raid, considering you’ve barely been on the ship a month. 

You’re taking a break and drinking some water, thinking about what Wooyoung may be doing and mentally preparing yourself for fixing any injuries that may happen while the crew is out. But you suddenly hear footsteps and loud voices from the deck above you and you set your cup down, listening closer. The crew wasn’t supposed to be back for a while, but maybe they came back early because it didn’t go well. 

You wipe your face with a towel and make your way up to the deck. But when you begin to hear voices you don’t recognize, you slow down until you’re frozen halfway up the steps. The footsteps grow closer and you move backward, retreating back down the steps and around the corner to peek at the people moving toward you. You quickly glance at the faces of the men and when you don’t recognize any of them, you panic. 

There are random people on the ship while the entire crew is gone and if you’re not mistaken they looked like officers. You remember the day Wooyoung told you about the secret doors and compartments that are hidden all around the ship and you rack your brain trying to think of the closest one. You turn to your right and remember one in the ceiling that leads to the main deck.

You step walk on the balls of your feet, feeling along the ceiling for the loose board and when you find it, you grab the nearest crate and use it to push the board up and climb through. The voices grow closer and you wiggle the rest of the way through, quietly slipping the board back in place and holding your breath. They must be searching the ship, which means you need to find a way off to warn the others before they walk straight into an ambush. 

You’re in the captain’s chambers, but that is probably the worst place you could possibly be. If you wait in here, you’re a sitting duck that they’ll eventually find, and if you try to leave and make it off the ship, you’ll be spotted in less than a minute. You sigh, pacing back and forth, weighing your options and deciding on the latter for a better chance at escaping and warning the others. 

The door is shut, as it usually is, and you reach out to grab the handle, your nerves making your hands shake violently. One deep breath to calm yourself down. Another deep breath to focus your mind. A third deep breath to give yourself power against whatever is making you anxious. That’s what Wooyoung repeats to you if you’re sad, frustrated, or nervous, and it always works. You wish for a moment that he was beside you, but you quickly rid yourself of that idea, focusing on the fact that you need to save him. 

With all the bravery you can muster, you turn the handle and open the door, quickly closing it behind you. There are a few officers scattered across the deck, so you move behind the steps next to the door and watch them as they talk to one another, moving to and fro. Your heart pounds, nearly distracting you, but you force yourself to stay focused for the sake of the crew. There is no room for error and you pray that you can make it off this ship.

The officers begin to disappear, some to the lower decks and a few out of sight on the far end of the ship. You bite your lip. This might be the best time to make a run for it, so you do. You move as fast as you can while remaining quiet and when you reach the side of the ship without a problem you pull yourself over and hand their for a moment. You catch your breath, before clenching your jaw against the pain in your arms. You can’t hold yourself like this for very long, so you glance at the dock below you and take your chance at dropping down. 

You release your grip on the ship and drop to your feet, but the moment you reach the dock, your body screams in pain from the fall. Your ankles and feet burn and you have scrapes across your hands, knees, and elbows from bracing yourself. The pain bites at your skin, begging you to stay down and recover, but the adrenaline from the situation has you slowing getting to your feet and grunting as you stand. There’s no time. 

You limp slightly as you make your way across the dock, remaining quiet and blinking your eyes to focus your vision. At first you think you’re seeing a weird shape, but the more you blink and the closer the shape gets, the more you realize that it’s an officer walking onto the dock and straight toward you. You gasp and glance around. There’s nowhere to go, you have no way of escaping. You stare at the ocean below the dock and consider diving in for a moment, injuries be damned, but when the officer pulls his gun from its holster and aims it at your head you freeze. 

“Don’t move,” he snarls, stalking down dock, closing in on you. 

You bite your lips again as the pain in your joints begins to throb relentlessly. Tears begin to fall as you silently fear your possible death, and even more so, the death of the crew. The officer stops in front of you, letting the barrel of the gun to your forehead. Your heart drops and you try to control your breathing, so you don’t seem weak in front of him, but it doesn’t seem to be working.

He begins walking forward with the gun still pressed to your head, forcing you to walk backward on the dock. His eyes are dark and menacing, glaring at you like your father used to and for a moment you can see your father in the man standing before you. The thought sends a chill down your spine and the tears begin to spill faster, your panic increasing tenfold. 

Suddenly, you hear a shout from behind the man, though you can’t see around him so you watch as his face twists in anger. The officer moves to stand behind you in the blink of an eye, moving the gun to your temple and tangling his hand in your hair to pull your head back harshly. You let out a cry of pain and he pulls harder, telling you to shut up and stop moving. 

The boys stand on the other side of the dock with some of the crew behind them, watching as the man presses the gun into your skin roughly, making you wince. Your eyes catch Wooyoung’s and you let out a sob, fear coursing through you both for yourself and him. If anything happens to him and you don’t stop it, you could never forgive yourself.

The officer cuts off your sob by wrapping his hand around your throat, squeezing tightly and cutting off your oxygen. “Stop making noise! I told you to shut up!” He shouts next to your ear, making you squeeze your eyes shut.

When you open them again you see Jongho and Yunho struggling to hold Wooyoung in place, so he doesn’t do anything stupid. The officer releases your throat and you break out into a coughing fit. The oxygen burns your throat and lungs as you gasp for air, struggling not to collapse. 

“Get on the ship and we can discuss keeping your little friend alive,” the officer calls to the boys. “Who’s your captain?”

Hongjoong immediately steps forward, holding his head high and pinning the officer with a glare that could make the strongest of men feel intimidated. “That would be me. What’s your reason for holding one of my crew members hostage and demanding we board my own ship in order to discuss saving a life that is not your own?”

The officer scoffs, quiet enough that only you can hear. You can tell he’s irritated without seeing his face and you know he’s just trying to get them aboard the ship as soon as possible without any complications. 

Before you even know what you’re saying the words are out of your mouth. “Run! You all need to run! It’s a trap!” You manage to scream through the hoarseness of your voice. The officer immediately slaps a hand over your mouth and growls at your outburst, probably contemplating killing you, but he knows it won’t get the boys on the ship. 

As soon as the words are out of your mouth, the boys draw their weapons, aiming at the officer. “Drop your weapon or we shoot,” Hongjoong threatens, moving forward slowly while the rest of the crew remains in place. Without orders they are not allowed to interfere. 

The officer tenses behind you, but moves back slowly, dragging you with him. He’s testing his boundaries. Hongjoong moves forward as well, remaining as calm as ever and keeping his eyes focused on the officer behind you.

“Tell your men to let us aboard the ship, give us the girl, and then we a real battle, if that’s what you really want from us.” As Hongjoong is speaking, more of the crew gather at the other end of the dock, returning from the raid and watching the scene before them unfold.

“Very well,” the officer agrees a little too easily before calling to his men, so they allow the crew to begin boarding the ship. The officer boards with you still in his hold, the boys following closely behind the two of you.

When you reach the deck, stopping in the center, the officer pushes you roughly and you fall to the floor, scraping and bruising more of your body. You hiss in pain, but before you can fully process what is happening, you’re being pulled up from the ground and pushed behind the boys. Hongjoong still has his gun aimed at the officer while the boys and the crew are aiming their guns at the officers emerging from their places around the ship.

There are less you thought, but still enough to put up a good fight. You’re directly behind Wooyoung and he’s using his free hand to reach behind him and hold onto your arm and keep your body pressed as close to his as it can get. You can feel his heart pounding in his chest as you cheek rests on his back. Sweat drips down the back of his neck and you can tell he’s stressed about the fight, but he remains calm as usual. 

The first shot is fired somewhere behind you and a member of your crew collapses, grunting in pain. You move to help them, but Wooyoung tightens his grip, turning to look at you over his shoulder. “Don’t. Someone else can help them. You need to stay with me because you don’t have a weapon, you’ve never been in a battle, and they’ve already made it clear they’re not afraid to shoot. Stay right behind me and don’t leave.”

You nod and he turns back around to fire at an officer that raises his gun at another crew member, killing him in an instant. You gasp lightly, but try to stay silent because of your bruised throat. As the fight rages on around you, you can’t help but feel useless while the crew is working to keep everyone alive and uninjured. Wooyoung’s left hand never leaves your arm and he walks slowly with you behind him which only makes you feel like more of a burden because you’re slowing him down. 

Amongst the chaos, the officer from before charges out of nowhere and knocks the gun out of Wooyoung’s hand. You watch as it slides across the deck and farther away from you while the officer begins to close in on you two. It’s obvious that the officers are losing, their numbers dropping with every shot heard and they’re becoming desperate. 

“I might as well just shoot both of you right now,” he snarls, standing a few feet away from the two of you as Wooyoung continues to back up and until you’re caught between him and the side of the ship. 

Your instincts kick in and you slip from behind Wooyoung, moving to stand in front of him, and take up as much space as possible. “What are you doing? Get behind me,” Wooyoung growls, grabbing at your arm, but you pull out of his grasp, moving forward slightly and the officer eyes you warily, clearly unsure of your motive.

The officer takes two cautious steps back, but keeps the gun trained on you, all of his focus on you. Just where you want it. If you can distract him long enough, then someone can come help the two of you out of this situation. You may not be able to use a gun and you don’t have fighting experience like the rest of the crew, but you refuse to sit around and wait to be killed. Or worse, wait for Wooyoung to be killed.

You take cautious steps forward, holding your hands out to show that you don’t have a weapon and the officer narrows his eyes at you while moving backward. You have no plan; no idea what you’re doing or how you’re going to get out of this or if you will get out of this. The only thing you can think about is distracting the man in front of you to protect the man behind you. Protect and save Wooyoung, that’s the only thing on your mind.

The sound of a gunshot stops you in your tracks. You gasp, throat tightening, skin burning, eyes watering as pain shoots through you like nothing you’ve ever felt before. You let out a blood curdling scream into the fresh, salty air right as another gunshot is heard. The officer before you, the one that just shot you, is staring straight ahead, his eyes lifeless and his arm dropping to his side as he crumples into a mess on the floor.

You can feel the warmth of his blood on your face, neck, and arms. You look up to see Hongjoong standing behind where the officer had been with his gun aimed right where his head had been. The pain reminds you that you’ve been shot and you look down to see a hole in your abdomen, blood flowing freely from the wound. You open your mouth to gasp, but all that comes out is splatters of blood as you cough. 

Suddenly you’re falling backwards and arms catch you carefully, cradling you as they lay you down gently. You immediately recognize them as Wooyoung’s and when you look up you meet his wide panicked eyes that are shedding tears like you’ve never seen before. Of all the times you’ve seen him cry, this is definitely the worst and it pains you to see him so hurt and frantic. 

You reach your hand up, despite the violent shaking, and caress his face for a moment, lightly brushing the tears from his face. He sniffles before grabbing your hand and holding it to his face, sobbing harder at the action. A tear falls from your own eye as you watch him fall apart before you.

Your breathing becomes more labored as Hongjoong races over, analyzing your wound before ordering the crew to shoot the last of the officers and then have the medically trained inspect your wound. You cough again, the action weakening your body faster and increasing the blood loss. Wooyoung sobs above you, rocking back and forth as he squeezes your weakening hand in both of his own. His tears warm your skin, making you feel alive instead of cold and dying. 

You begin to shiver, the cool ocean air bringing goosebumps to your skin. Wooyoung immediately notices and slips his coat off, and laying it over you gently. He’s always so gentle with you, ever since you first stepped onto this ship. So caring and kind and selfless and patient. You would use a million other words to describe the perfect man sitting next to you if your mind wasn’t going completely black, the world around you blurring.

You moan in pain and mumble incoherent, broken sentences, moving your head back and forth to distract yourself from the pain and discomfort. Your vision begins to go black around the edges, your hearing completely gone. You watch as people move around you quickly, but the world is silent. You don’t even hear your own whines and whimpers as you’re lifted off the ground. 

Your throat still feels tight from the shock and fear as well as the incident with the officer when you were nearly choked to death. So many run-ins with death in the course of the month. Your father always did say you were bad luck. But then again how can you believe that when you got the honor of meeting Wooyoung and spending this last month with him. He gave you a second chance and you got the honor of repaying him by protecting him from the officer because if it wasn’t you that had been shot it probably would have been Wooyoung. 

Out of the two of you, you would rather be the one to die because, unlike you, Wooyoung has been a part of Ateez for most of his life and this is his family. He has a future here and he has made a place for himself. You wanted him to have that; to have his life and his family. Your vision goes black and your mind goes blank. Nothing to hear, nothing to see, nothing to think. Just darkness.

\------------------------------------

The first thing you notice is the rocking. The subtle back and forth that could only mean you’re on a ship out on the water. The second thing you notice is the warm weight in your hand, the small calluses scraping against your skin lightly. You try to inhale deeply, but it makes your body burn from top to bottom. Pain radiates from your abdomen and your throat. The feeling is more than uncomfortable and you moan quietly, though it comes out raspy and scratchy from the dryness of your throat. 

You hear a gasp and then movement around the room followed by a few voices, but you can’t make out what they’re saying because your hearing is still coming back. You moan again from the pain in your body, but you don’t have the strength to move or open your eyes. You inhale again and let out a whimper at the burning sensation, wishing the pain to be over. 

You can feel hands on your arms and face, caressing you gently like you’re made of glass, but you don’t know who they belong to and you still can’t decipher what the voices are saying. Everything sounds distorted, like your underwater and you can’t get yourself to come up. 

A few minutes pass and your hearing begins to focus in on the voices, allowing you to understand their words and your eyes begin to detect the light in the room. The first voice you hear is Wooyoung’s and the sound of his voice beside you makes tears begin to roll down your cheeks. He immediately begins wiping them from your face and sweetly cooing to you.

“No, don’t cry. Save your energy for healing and recovering. Please don’t cry,” he whispers, doing his best to soothe you even though you can hear the strain in his voice.

You mumble something incoherent, even to yourself, and Wooyoung quickly shushes you, telling you not to speak because your throat is still injured. You nod and let your head rest against the pillow. Your ears begin to tune into the voices in the background. There are a few and the first one you recognize is the captain’s; you’re not sure what he’s saying because he’s too far, but you can tell he’s anxious from the speed of his words. 

After a while you feel a cool rag on your forehead and the feeling relaxes you enough to finally open your eyes. The light is immediately too much and you quickly close them, giving yourself a second to get prepared. When you try again, you squint to ease yourself into using your eyes again. The light bothers you, but the more you blink, taking your time to open your eyes, little by little, the easier it becomes. 

You sigh, getting more used to having your sight and hearing back. Wooyoung is beside you, petting your hair and watching you closely with his dark, glassy eyes. You can see the tears shining and when you finally make eye contact with him, his tears begin to fall freely, his lower lip wobbly slightly. You lift your hand carefully, using the little energy you have to wipe the tears away. Wooyoung lets out a noise that sounds like a mixture of a laugh and a sigh of relief and you manage to give him a small smile.

He clasps your hand in his and presses his lips to your palm and fingers, giggling as he watches your smile grow. “I’m so, so glad you’re awake. I couldn’t function without you,” he mumbles against your hand.

Your lips turn down into a frown. “No, Wooyoung-”

“Shhh, please don’t talk. You need to heal your throat. Just listen for now,” he says, letting his eyes roam over your face. “I know you’re going to argue with me and tell me I shouldn’t have been sad and upset, but I was and no one can change that. I was devastated when I saw you get shot. Devastated,” he repeats, his voice cracking slightly.

He inhales, trying to keep himself composed. “I was so mad at you. All I could think was why you would do that and how I should have been the one that got hit. When you screamed, I really… I really thought I was going to throw up or pass out. I never want to hear that kind of scream from you ever again. My heart broke and I really thought I was going to lose you. It was too soon to lose you and I thought I had. But here you are.”

“Here I am,” you rasp.

He places a finger over your lips and shakes his head. “Please, don’t ever do something like that again because I could never move on if you died. I love you and I hadn’t gotten a chance to say it yet as I held you in my arms while you bled out. Now that you’re here in front of me alive and healing, I needed to tell you because I got a second chance and I’m not letting it go to waste. I love you so, so much and I need you in my life, so please don’t leave me.”

You smile and nod your head. You mouth, “I love you too” and Wooyoung immediately leans forward to press his lips gently to yours, smiling through the kiss; his tears of joy and relief mix with yours and nothing feels more perfect.


	2. Pirate!Mingi

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is actually edited! Ayyyyyy, Atiny let's get it, drop the beat yo

Your parents rush to direct the workers where to go, gathering and boxing up supplies to bring to the dock later. Apparently, there is a large pirate ship stopping at the dock today and it’s supposed to be here for a few days to get repairs and collect supplies while tending to the wounded after a serious battle. Your mom told you it was one of the most powerful ships sailing the ocean and the captain is someone they’ve met in the past, though he’s much older now. You asked her who, but she told you you wouldn’t remember because you were so young. 

Now you’re gathering medical supplies into your bag before your family and the workers move down to the dock to meet the ship. You call out to your parents telling them you’re ready as the last of the workers gathers the crates. The dock isn’t far from your family’s shop, so everyone moves as a group, trading off when the crates get to be too heavy. 

Before you know it you’ve reached the dock just as you spot a ship in the distance. You wait with everyone else as the ship sails closer and closer until it begins slowing down next to the dock, dropping the anchor. You wait for the wooden board to meet the dock and the crew members to begin spilling off the ship before you quickly move forward, inspecting each crew member and grouping them based on the injuries they have. 

You begin treating the worst injuries first, applying ointments to burns and cleaning and wrapping wounds while the crew lay on the deck exhausted and groaning. Your helper follows around behind you handing the treated crew members water and bread. The entire ordeal takes about an hour total and when you’ve finally finished, most of your family’s workers - including your assistant - and the ship’s crew have left the dock, presumably to go find places to stay for the night. 

You wipe your hands after finishing cleaning the last crew member’s wounds, turning to see your parents at the end of the dock standing with someone that has their back to you. The sun is setting over the horizon and the breeze coming in from the ocean begins to feel colder as you walk down the dock to meet your parents. You sigh as your mother takes the bloodied rags from your hands, shoving them into a bag with the rest that will be washed later.

You turn to the stranger and your father who are in a serious conversation about a topic you don’t understand. You take this time to glance up at the stranger, watching his brows furrow as he becomes more serious and hearing his voice slightly raise in volume as he becomes more animated. His hair is a dark blue complimenting his skin perfectly and he has it slicked back styled neater than any other pirate you’ve ever seen. He looks young, maybe your age or a little older, but what’s confusing you the most is that he looks familiar. 

Your mother told you that you had met the captain all those years ago when he had visited this dock the first time, but they didn’t tell you that he was around your age and was most certainly not a captain at the time of your first meeting. You can recognize his face, but because he’s older now you can’t quite match it with a face in your memory. 

After a few minutes of staring at his profile and trying to remember him, the captain turns to you, successfully startling you from your trance. You turn away glancing over your mother’s shoulder to watch as the last of the crew members are disappearing into the village. You only turn back when your father calls your name and explains that the captain is the last person that needs medical attention and then you can be done for the night. 

You nod your head and begin preparing your supplies as your parents say goodbye, agreeing to meet the captain at the dock in the morning to bring the rest of the supplies. As your parents leave the dock, you instruct the captain to sit down so you can reach all of his wounds and have him rest as you do so. He quickly follows your orders and drops to the deck, sighing as he leans back against his hands. 

“Where are your injuries?” You ask him, squatting down to be eye level with him.

He grunts as he shifts his weight to point at his shoulder, his side, and the obvious cuts on his face. You nod and retrieve your rag to begin cleaning the cuts on his face. He watches you with sharp eyes, inhaling sharply each time you brush over a bruise. You notice a scar running diagonally from his cheekbone down to his jaw and when you glance up, meeting his intimidating gaze you know not to ask about it. 

“So what’s your name captain?” You ask out of habit, finding that when you ask people questions while they’re being treated they relax more and forget about the pain. 

He grunts as you clean the cut on his lip, quickly licking the spot after to soothe the sting of the ointment. “Mingi. Captain Mingi of the Aurora.”

You nod along, listening to each word carefully. “Mingi,” you mumble as you finish with the last cut, committing the name to memory. “That’s a beautiful name for a ship. Any particular reason you chose that name?”

You glance at his shoulder, then into his eyes and he seems to pick up on your silent question, pulling his coat off followed by his shirt. You swallow, trying to remain professional, but you’re not usually treating anyone around your age and certainly not anyone this handsome. You keep your eyes on the shallow cut on his shoulder, preparing a new rag and beginning your routine to clean it. Mingi watches you closely, making sweat build on the back of your neck and drip down your spine. 

He grunts once again, as he flinches away from your touch but you hold his arm, keeping him in place. “My mother died when I was young and I always swore that one day when I had my own ship I would name it after her, so we could always be sailing together,” he explains between heavy exhales, trying his best to remain still and keep his face stoic, but it doesn’t work. 

His chest puffs out and the veins in his neck stand out as he holds his breath. He finally exhales as you remove the rag and begin bandaging the area. “You need to breathe while I’m doing this. I don’t need you passed out on the dock.”

He nods, taking deep breaths and enjoying the time of peace before you begin cleaning the final wound. “Thank you.”

You give him a smile while you prepare your last rag. “Don’t thank me yet, you still have one more,” you tell him before pressing the rag against the deeper cut on his side. He flinches, his stomach muscles tensing as he attempts to shrink away from your touch. You notice he’s holding his breath again and you lightly flick his chest, so he puffs it out, quickly inhaling another ragged breath. “You’re just lucky your wounds aren’t as bad as what some of the crew had.”

His brows furrow again as he stares at your face, keeping his eyes away from where you’re cleaning the dry blood from his skin. “Yeah, I’m very lucky.” 

Finally, you’re bandaging the area and cleaning up your supplies when Mingi begins breathing normally again, although the way he lays there dramatically makes it seem like you just removed a bullet from him. He pulls his shirt and coat back on, standing up and dusting his pants off as you adjust your bag. The two of you make your way back down the dock, nearly passing the ship when you hear the explosion.

The power of it throws you back and you land against the deck with a thud. Your ears ring, muffling the sounds of shouting and footsteps in the distance. Your body feels frozen against the wood beneath you, unable to move. The bag you once held is gone and you suddenly feel exposed and unprepared without it. 

You hear faint groaning from around you and you struggle to open your eyes at first, blinking against the smoke in the air and trying to clear your foggy vision. It takes all the power and energy in your body to roll your head to the side and focus your vision enough to see Mingi rolling onto his side and grunting as he struggles to push himself up. 

You begin violently coughing, unable to stop yourself or take a deep enough breath. Suddenly Mingi is kneeling above you, covering your mouth with his hand. Your instinct is to panic, but you’re still struggling to move your body as pain shoots through you from the impact. You continue to cough, your body fighting against his hold, but he leans next to your ear and you can feel his breath against your neck.

“You need to be quiet. Someone set off that bomb and they’re close by probably looking for anyone in the area.” He lifts his head to look at you and see that you understood him. You nod your head, trying to control your breathing and get out the rest of your coughs before he removes his hand.

He quickly helps you sit up, stopping to listen as footsteps approach the dock from the other side of the ship. Mingi scrambles toward the edge of the dock, pulling you along with him. You don’t understand what he’s doing until he carefully slips into the water, his lips becoming a thin line as he concentrates. He reaches his arms up to you and you swallow as you lean down to grab his shoulders, his hands holding your waist to carefully lower you into the water. 

You whimper at the cold temperature of the water and the pain that shoots through your body every time you move. He shushes you once more, helping you swim under the dock so you’re both hidden from anyone passing by. You try to remain as quiet as possible, but you let out another whimper from the strain of your body as it works to keep you afloat. 

Mingi wraps his arm around you doing his best to keep both of you above the water. You hear footsteps coming down the dock and you hold your breath as they pass over you. They’re probably just inspecting the ship and checking for anyone that may be aboard, but you can’t help the increase of your heartbeat as you imagine someone peeking their head below the dock to catch you two.

After what feels like forever, the footsteps begin retreating from the dock and you finally exhale, feeling your body relax for the first time despite your shivering. Mingi whispers to you that you’re going to wait a while to be sure no one returns and then swim to shore to find a place to hide and figure out the next step. You nod along mindlessly, distracted by the numbness of your skin from the cold and aching pain in your muscles. 

You sit there for what you thought was an hour but in reality was probably half an hour, if that. Your eyes are drooping and your body feels completely frozen, so you can’t even feel the muscle aches anymore. Mingi swims to the edge of the dock, peeking around to see if anyone is around and when he comes back to tell you the coast is clear, fear immediately shoots through. 

“Wait, wait. What if they’re hiding? What if they know we’re here and they’re just waiting for us to leave? What if-”

“Would you rather stay here all night until we’re frozen and exhausted?”

You bite the inside of your cheek, closing your eyes to calm down because you know he’s right and you know there is no other option. “Okay. Okay, let’s go. Which way are we going?”

“Well, I believe this is your hometown, so you know it better than I do. You tell me.”

You swallow, meeting his determined gaze with your worried one. Nodding your head, you push your fear aside and swim closer to shore while staying under the dock. Mingi is following you closely which adds onto the immense pressure you’re feeling, knowing you’re the one that has to navigate the two of you to a safe place. Your body screams against every movement you make, but you push forward.

When the shore becomes too shallow you grab Mingi’s hand pulling him with you as you quickly run from under the dock and take off across the sand. Running is a painful struggle as you seal your lips to stop the coughs waiting to spill from you, inhaling and exhaling sharply through your nose while pulling Mingi behind you. Your skin feels frozen from the evening breeze that comes in from the ocean, goosebumps appearing across your arms and legs.

When you reach the road you slow down until your footsteps are no longer audible, constantly whipping your head back and forth in search of anyone because you have no idea who you’re up against. Your hair is still soaking wet, water droplets falling around you and onto your skin, sending a shiver down your spine and you clench your jaw to stop the chattering of your teeth. 

You hear voices from the far side of the buildings to your right and you freeze, your grip on Mingi’s hand tightening until he shakes it out of your grip. You look around quickly, devising a plan in your head, but Mingi wraps his arms around your waist before you can speak, dragging you with him as he runs into the nearest alley. He roughly pushes you into the far corner, his body falling on top of yours so the two of you are just a lump in the corner among the trash. 

Your breathing is labored from the shock of his actions and the adrenaline of the possibility that you’ll get caught by the people that are raiding your town. You can feel Mingi’s breath against your shoulder and neck as well as his body folded over your own, your limbs tangled with his as both of you remain still as can be. You squeeze your eyes closed, waiting for the voices to disappear.

Suddenly your being awoken by Mingi and you blink, sitting up quickly to see you’re still laying in the alley. “You knocked out for a minute,” he informs you, giving you a once over to be sure you’re alright before turning around to glance down the alley. “They’re gone. We need to move now.”

He pulls you up onto your feet, dragging you with him until you reach the end of the alley. He peeks around the walls to confirm that the people are gone, then he turns to you nodding once and you move past him, quickly making your way down the road. You spot the bakery a few shops down and quickly jog over to the entrance, pushing the door in and peeking inside. You don’t see anyone so you slip inside with Mingi trailing behind you, softly shutting the door. 

You wait, listening for any noises while your eyes search every inch of the room that you can see. Nothing. No one. Your brows furrow as you make your way further into the shop, moving around overturned tables and chairs. Mingi stays close behind you, ready for an attack.

When you reach the counter at the back of the shop you quickly climb over, dropping to the floor carefully and walking into the back room where everything is made. The smell of fresh bread still lingers in the air, a familiar scent that makes your chest tighten in fear of what happened to everyone, while yearning for everything to be normal once again. You keep your eyes on the floor searching for a certain block, a specific square that you remember the shopkeeper informing your family about all those years ago. 

You scan quickly, feeling along each one with your shoes until you feel hands wrap around your arms, pulling you flush against the man behind you. You lift your head quickly, ready to question his actions when you see two dead bodies on the floor a couple feet ahead of you. A cold sweat breaks out on your skin and a chill runs down your spine. Your eyes widen and Mingi covers your mouth as you let out a scream of horror. One of his arms wraps around your waist to hold you up as your legs give out under you.

The husband and wife that owned the shop - the same people that used to give you free cookies as a child - are dead on the floor of their shop. They each have a single bullet hole in their foreheads, staring up at the ceiling, their hands still intertwined. A sob bursts from your throat, muffled by Mingi’s hand as he turns you around, grabbing your face in his hands to make you look at him.

“You need to focus. We need to get out of here unless you want to end up like them.” He shakes you when you don’t respond and you quickly nod. 

Mingi gives you a second to breathe and compose yourself before he turns you around and makes you keep your head forward. He helps to guide you over each of their bodies and you whimper when your leg brushes one of their hands. You swallow the bile rising in your throat, blinking back the tears and focusing on the task at hand - getting to safety and rescuing your family. 

You hear another explosion from one street over, the ground shaking beneath your feet. With adrenaline pumping through your veins and reality finally wrapping its cruel fingers around your throat, you drop to your hands and knees, feeling each and every square of tile. As you reach the far end of the store you feel one of the tiles against the wall shift slightly beneath your hand and you knock on it, listening to the sound of the hollowed-out hole in the floor. 

Gunshots ring in your ears as you quietly push a cart off of the tile and force your fingers between the sliver of space between the tiles. You grind your teeth as the edges dig into your skin, drawing blood and ultimately making the task at hand that much more difficult. With a sharp inhale through your nose you manage to lift the tile from the floor and push it aside, revealing the gaping hole promising nothing but darkness. 

You glance up at Mingi, taking note of his look of surprise before glancing around and pointing to a nearby lantern. “Grab that. They keep matches in the drawer beneath it but don’t light it until we’re down there,” you order and he moves quickly, wasting no time, and neither do you as you position yourself at the entrance of the hole and jump down.

You land safely on the dirt below, waiting for Mingi to follow. He hands you the lantern and matches before climbing in after you, quickly grabbing the tile to cover your tracks. But as you clench your fists in anticipation you feel the blood drip down your fingers, reminding you of the blood smeared on the tile. 

“Wait,” you gasp, feeling lightheaded from the situation, “wipe my blood off the tile. They can’t find the tunnels or we won’t be safe.”

Mingi uses the sleeve of his coat to wipe the remnants of blood from the tile, slowly sliding it back into place. The two of you sigh in relief before Mingi grunts and curses. You realize that you’re enveloped in darkness, so you drop to your knees once again, fumbling with the matches before finally lighting one and using it to light the lantern. You pocket the matches and stand up, lifting the lantern to see Mingi.

The tunnel isn’t tall enough for his height so he’s bending forward and rubbing his head. “The tunnels are discriminating against tall people,” he grumbles lowly and you manage to laugh despite the overwhelming feeling of panic and stress. “Where are we?”

“Welcome to the tunnels. These have been here for generations and they reach all corners of the town and even farther. Before this town was completely pirate-friendly and still run by royal soldiers this was how the people of the town traded with the pirates and moved supplies. It’s been here long before my grandparents were even alive and it’s rarely used for anything anymore. Most shops have changed since then and didn’t keep their entrance to the tunnel because they didn’t think it was necessary

“But Mr. and Mrs. Lee were always old-fashioned and liked to keep some traditions around from the old times.” Your mind wanders back to the image of them lying dead on the floor of their own ship and you squeeze your eyes shut against the memory burning itself into your brain. “I just wish I could have thanked them.”

Mingi moves forward and rests his hand on your shoulder gently. “I’m not going to pretend I know what it’s like to have to flee into the tunnels below your town because it is being raided and to find friends murdered in cold blood, but I do know what it’s like to lose someone. It really does get better with time, but don’t let yourself push those thoughts away and forget the ones you lost. Feel the pain, cry, get mad, do what you need to, but don’t push it away or try to forget it because you lose your empathy and your sense of self.”

You nod, meeting his eyes and giving him a weak smile. “Who knew pirates were so wise?” You joke, wiping the stray tears that escaped. 

“You’d be surprised how many of us aren’t actually as bad as we’re made out to be,” he says with a smile, taking the lantern from your hand and lifting it as you begin to lead the way. 

“I never thought any pirates were terrible. I’ve worked with pirates my entire life and I’ve never thought anything of it.”

“That’s because you live here and it’s normal. It’s not always like this, even out on the sea, among the pirates, there are stereotypes. Most pirates try to take advantage of me and bully me into giving up my position because I’m young. But this is something that everyone deals with at some point in their life, so I brush it off because I know I deserve my title and my position as captain of the Aurora.”

“The world can be a cruel place,” you agree, keeping your eyes forward and leading the two of you on your silent journey through the tunnels. 

You’ve never been down here so you’re not completely confident in the turns that you make, but you try to keep a mental image of the town and map the way from the bakery to your parents’ shop to the best of your ability. The two of you walk in silence through the tunnels, stopping every once in a while so Mingi can stretch after being bent awkwardly for so long. 

The two of you decided to check in any of the shops that still have an entrance to the tunnels, searching for his crew members or any survivors. You’ve come across a few of his crew members that had escaped the massacres as well as six survivors. But there are far more corpses in the places you’ve seen than there are of the living. 

You, Mingi, and your group of survivors move through the tunnels swiftly, finally reaching where you hope to find your family’s shop. There are more entrances to the tunnels on this side of town, so it could be any number of them. You stop below an entrance and the group follows suit, silently watching as Mingi pushes open the entrance and lifts you enough that you can pull yourself up. 

You lay flat on the ground for a minute, listening for any voices, gunshots, or movement of any sort. When you hear nothing but silence you push yourself up slowly, getting your feet beneath you and glancing at your surroundings, quickly realizing that this isn’t your family’s shop. But you notice there are bodies across the shop, near the entrance and supplies strewn across the floor. 

You peek your head over the entrance and spot Mingi and the others. “I’m going to check for survivors and supplies, I’ll be back down in a minute or two. Only open the hatch if you hear exactly four knocks and stay silent, I’ll try to be quick,” you instruct quickly before closing the hatch on a surprised Mingi, pushing a crate over half the square to keep them in and anyone else out. 

You hear pounding and grunting as Mingi presumably pushes against the hatch, disregarding your rule of silence. With a final glance at your only exit, you turn away, taking cautious steps toward the center of the shop. You move to the bodies first, checking each one for a pulse, but no one seems to be alive. The thought of all these innocent people dying makes your chest tighten and you take a deep breath, reminding yourself that there are survivors below you, waiting for your return.

But before you can stand to begin gathering supplies you hear footsteps and voices nearing the shop and your heart stops for a moment, a cold sweat spreading over your body. You have no time to run and flee, so you do the next best thing and drop between two of the bodies, lying face down and pulling one of the bodies to cover yours slightly. You sprawl out on the floor and try to calm your racing heart. 

The voices grow closer until they’re outside the shop and when the door opens you hold your breath, listening to the sound of the footsteps stopping a few feet from the door. They only stay for a few seconds, but with your life on the line, time seems to stop. The door closes and you wait for the sounds to disappear before you push the body off of yourself and press your hands against your face to hold back your tears. The reality of the situation hits you full force, but you know you have no time to waste so you will yourself to stand back up and grab a bag from one of the shelves.

You fill the bag with food, water, first-aid supplies, a few extra clothes, and a small doll you find abandoned on one of the tables. With one last sweep of the shop, you return to the entrance of the tunnel and push the crate out of the way as quietly as possible. Fours knocks. The hatch opens immediately and your drop your bag in before dropping down beside it, watching as Mingi returns the square to its position.

He turns to you with a look of fury and you stare up at him blankly, still sick from the feeling of the body on you and shaking from nearly being killed. He looks like he’s about to yell at you or at least chew you out for going up alone, but his eyes drift downward and he gasps like he just got the wind knocked out of him. 

“You’re bleeding!” He whisper-shouts, his eyes filling with panic as he reaches forward to search you for any injuries.

“No. It’s not my own,” you reply absentmindedly, focusing all your energy on keeping yourself together as to not crumble in front of ten strangers who are relying on you to guide them out of the tunnels. 

“What happened? Whose is it?”

“Some of the raiders came into the shop for a second so I had to hide under one of the bodies and pretend to be one of them,” you rasp out, your breath leaving you at the end of your sentence as all feeling leaves your body and you lean forward, trying to steady your vision. 

Mingi pulls you toward him, wrapping his arms around you and holding you as you tremble against him. He rubs your back for a couple minutes before pulling away with a soft expression. “Don’t go off on your own again. We all stick together as a group. Now we need to keep moving because we’re wasting time. Can you keep moving?”

You nod, swallowing the lump in your throat and blinking away your tears. You need to be strong and you need to push forward, for the group, for your parents, and for yourself. With one last look shared between you and Mingi, you grab the bag and lead the group through the tunnel counting the entrances above you. The shop you were in is down the street from your parents’ shop, so you count until you reach the last entrance before the tunnel turns onto the next street.

You stop below the entrance and wrap the bag across your body as Mingi pushes the hatch open. He turns to you with a reluctant look in his eyes, but you give him a small smile, hoping that it reassures him even the slightest bit. He grunts as he lifts you through the entrance, the constant lifting paired with his injuries is taking its toll on him, but he’s been trying his best to hide it, just as you have. 

You sigh as you lay on the ground for a moment, relishing in the familiarity of the back room. You’ve spent countless hours back here organizing supplies and taking inventory, even taking a nap sometimes when your parents were out of the shop and weren’t around to disturb your sleep. The memories continue to flood your mind as you stand up, glancing around the room and listening intently for any sort of commotion. 

Mingi climbs up and you glance down at him in confusion. He pushes himself up and looks at you. “No more doing things alone, it’s too dangerous and we can’t afford to lose anyone.”

You nod and creep your way through the backroom until you reach the door that leads to the front of the store. Mingi stops behind you and you can feel his breath on the back of your head as you press your ear to the door, listening for movement, voices, footsteps, or even groaning to know there are people inside. 

You turn to look at Mingi before pulling open the door and peeking out into the store. It’s completely dark, due to the sun setting and the lack of candles and lanterns. You don’t hear anything, so you slip into the store, holding the door open with your foot as Mingi goes to gather the group as well as a lantern. 

When everyone slips passed you into the room, you quietly shut the door behind you, letting a sigh escape you for a moment while you rest your forehead on the door. You can hear the others move around the store and you close your eyes. Your parents must be hiding amongst the crates and trunks in the shop and if they’re not here they must be in their office off to the left. 

Pushing away from the door you make your way to their office first, opening the door to find it empty. The office is empty, but it’s torn apart, meaning the raiders stole anything of value, leaving papers thrown around and both their tables knocked over. The office is in terrible shape and you can’t imagine that the shop looks any better.

You move through the makeshift aisles created by stacks of crates and boxes, scanning for any that have been left untouched or miscellaneous supplies that the raiders left behind. Your bag becomes full quickly, so you quietly call Mingi to meet you with another bag, your voice ringing out in the silence even when you’re whispering. When you get no response you call again, and when he fails to acknowledge you a second time you begin to worry, moving across the shop swiftly. You look down each aisle only seeing a few of the people you rescued, but none of Mingi’s crew. 

You swallow your fear, pushing forward until you reach the far side of the shop, freezing when you’re met with a wall of people with their backs to you. It’s Mingi and his crew. Some have their heads hanging with their eyes closed and some are muffling their cries of sorrow. You move forward, noticing the pile of bodies on the floor near the wall. Mingi hears your footsteps and quickly turns around, tears sparkling in his eyes. 

He places his hands on your shoulders and you rest your hands on top of his. You can see the pain and anger in his eyes, the raw intensity nearly too much for you to handle after the day you’ve had. “Mingi, you’re crew, I’m so sorry.”

He shakes his head, sniffling slightly before taking a deep breath. “Not just my crew, unfortunately.”

Your eyebrows furrow at his words, not quite understanding the meaning, but before you can open your mouth to question him about it he moves aside. The last thing you’re aware of is Mingi whispering a breathy “I’m sorry” before your brain shuts down at the sight before you. You gasp, holding your breath for a moment as your mind processes exactly what you’re seeing, but right as you open your mouth to let out a scream, Mingi covers your mouth, silencing your screams of pain.

He follows you to the ground as you fall to your knees, a violent trembling taking over your body, starting from your chest and moving outward until your limbs are shaking uncontrollably. You continue to cry and scream into his hand, the sobs cutting one another off until you begin to hyperventilate. A cold sweat breaks out on your body, wetting the back of your shirt while your face feels like it’s burning up from the hot tears streaming down your face. 

Mingi holds you up, making sure you don’t collapse on the floor, though you wish he would so you could at least feel something. Your eyes are glassy and filled with tears, but you can still see them lying only a few feet away. Lifeless. One bullet hole each. You let out another scream that burns your throat, your chest tightening until it feels like you can’t move or breathe or even cry. 

Your parents are dead and you were too late to save them. You took too long to reach them. If only you had moved faster. If only you had been fearless and taken down every person that has invaded your town and stood between you and your parents. If only you had stayed with them. 

There are a million ways of how you could have saved them had you done something different, but the reality is that would have gotten you killed which wouldn’t have made a difference in their deaths. There was no way you could have stopped it, but the guilt lingers in your mind, scratching at you through the pain. 

Minutes pass by while you remain in place, but at some point, Mingi turns your face away so you can’t look at their bodies anymore. He tells you it will only make it worse, but you’re not sure it would matter in the end. The crew disappeared, resting and gathering supplies until the group could decide its next move and you’re glad that you don’t have an audience to watch you crumble to pieces. 

Mingi is patient and kind, once again surprising you considering he is not only a pirate but a captain at that. The way he strokes your hair and lets you sob into his shirt until you run out of tears reminds you that he is still young and he was once in your place, mourning a mother that must have been much younger than your parents. The thought of him understanding what you’ve been through and being there for you creates a connection between the two of you and makes you feel less alone; less like an orphan. 

You hear soft footsteps approaching you and a crew member appears a few feet away, his eyes softening as he sees your state. “I know this is a terrible time, and I’m incredibly sorry about your loss, but we can’t stay here much longer. We need to take the supplies we have and the people we’ve gathered and get away from here. We’re sitting ducks if we stay here.”

Your eyes automatically travel toward your parents at his words and Mingi is quick to block your view with his body, nodding at the crew member, letting him know they’ll discuss a plan in a minute. The crew member leaves and Mingi stands up, shuffling around to grab his bag, your bag, and the few supplies scattered around the floor. You do your best to keep your eyes away from your parents while Mingi does so, waiting until he helps you off the floor to come back to reality. 

Mingi leads you away from the place that changed your life and toward the back of the store where the group has gathered. As soon as you leave the store - your parents’ store - then there is no going back and there will be nothing for you in this village. You have no family, no friends, no life. You have nothing and you know you have to leave - to escape - but the thought of leaving everything behind feels like you’re abandoning your past.

You push all those thoughts away, focusing on the task at hand - getting out of town and protecting the group standing before you. The crew members are relying on Mingi to lead them as their captain and the people of your town are relying on you to lead them as their friend and neighbor. They’re all looking to you two for protection and guidance and you can feel the unspoken pressure settling on your shoulders.

Ideas and reservations are thrown around, weighing the pros and cons of each possibility of escape. One idea is sneaking back through the tunnels and avoiding the raiders at all costs, but risking getting trapped if another bomb goes off, though it doesn’t seem likely. Another idea is for the group to leave the shop and face any raiders head-on, charging toward the dock and killing anyone in our way, but that would also mean risking members of the group as well. Eventually, the group decides on sneaking back through the tunnels and exiting from the bakery because it’s the closest exit to the dock. 

The inside of the bakery is still empty aside from the bodies, but nothing seems to horrify you as much as it did before. Mingi is leading the way through the shop and you’re at the back of the group, holding a pipe you found and preparing yourself for any fights that may occur as soon as you leave the shop. 

However, the walk from the shop is eerily calm. The group passes the alley that you and Mingi hid in and you glance around, waiting for an attack, but nothing comes. Silence. Nothing, but the sound of everyone’s footsteps and the hammering of your heart in your chest. 

You reach the beach, walking out in the open, visible for most of the town to see, but still nothing. You’re not disappointed that the escape has been smooth thus far, in fact, you’re relieved, but the uneasy feeling in your stomach keeps you on edge. They didn’t just leave… did they? 

You push all your worries aside as the group reaches the dock, hurrying to the side of the ship. You and the townspeople keep an eye out while Mingi and his crew prepare the ship to leave. You see nothing but the empty town before you. 

The crew begins boarding the ship and you wait for everyone to board before you finally join them, taking one last glance over your shoulder at the place you’ve always known as home. You quickly look away, minimizing your suffering by averting your eyes and distracting yourself by helping the crew with anything they need. A few minutes later Mingi is steering the ship away from the dock, everyone collectively sighing as the ship sails farther and farther away from the town in shambles. 

You sit on the far end of the ship, away from everyone else, and finally allow yourself to slump against the boards, sighing in relief as the tension leaves your body. You find yourself curling up and laughing slightly at the realization of where you are and what you’re doing. You’re leaving your home and you have no idea where you’re going to go or if you’ll ever be able to come back. Fresh tears sting your eyes and you squeeze your eyes closed, willing yourself to rest.

——————

When you wake up you notice a blanket placed over you and you hear soft snoring. You blink a few times, realizing it’s completely dark and the stars are shining above you, twinkling against the night sky. You turn to see Mingi fast asleep a few feet away from you, his lips slightly parted. The world is silent aside from Mingi’s snoring and you’re thankful that he slept out here with you, so you don’t feel as alone. 

You stretch your sore muscles, feeling stiff from sleeping on the boards, before standing up and wincing at each pop from your joints. You keep the blanket around your shoulders, hiding your skin from the cold ocean breeze. The ship rocks gently beneath you, simultaneously lulling you into a state of peace and making you seasick. You take a deep breath, pushing away the nausea threatening to creep in. 

You lean against the side of the boat, staring into the water below. A few tears fall, hitting the water, though they’re no match for the small waves crashing against the ship. Even the smallest of waves hold more power than you could ever imagine and for a moment you wish you could become one with the ocean, if only to feel that type of strength and power for once in your life. Then your pain would be no match for you and maybe you wouldn’t have to feel so empty, yet so full of misery. 

Covering your mouth against the sniffles and hiccups, you try to remain as quiet as possible to allow Mingi all the rest he needs after two days of battling, but despite your efforts, you hear him groan and stir. Eventually, he makes his way to you, stopping beside you and leaning against the edge of the ship, mirroring your position. 

“Nights on the ocean are cold and can seem never-ending, but nothing can beat the fresh air and the view of the stars,” he mentions wistfully, staring out at the water with a small smile. “I’ve spent my entire life on a ship and I’m still not used to the beauty of the world and the beauty in freedom. Freedom to sail where you want and visit as many places as you wish. To see places you never imagined you would see.

“But if you’re surrounded by the wrong people it can become lonely very quickly. Luckily my crew and I are very close, but sometimes I spend nights wishing I had a permanent home, a place that I know will always be there, a home that isn’t considered a target for the navy. Sometimes I miss my friends and sometimes I stare at the sky wishing I could see my mother one last time, but I wouldn’t trade this life for anything. I wouldn’t trade my ship for anything. And maybe one day, if you choose to stay on the ship and create a life for yourself here, you could feel the same.”

The tears run freely now, falling into the ocean and onto the wood, forming a small puddle. You sniffle and try to wipe the tears away as soon as they leave your eyes, but there are too many and you give up leaning your head back to stare at the sky. A broken sigh falls from your lips and you squeeze your eyes closed, processing his words and remembering you have a life-altering decision to make. 

“Would you let me?” You whisper, your voice no longer sounding like your own. So pained and weak, it is completely unrecognizable to your own ears. 

“Let you?”

“Would you let me stay on the ship? Create a life here? Find a home on this ship?”

You can hear him move, but you keep your eyes closed, willing yourself to stay strong. His heat radiates off his body and warms your arm. “Yes. You are welcome to stay for a day, a week, a lifetime. As long as you need a place to call home, then the Aurora can be your home. Life is going to be hard for a while because as hard as it is to accept, you lost it all. I know what that’s like and I want to help you in any way I can.”

Finally, you feel your composure snap and a shudder tears through your body as you choke on your tears. You turn to Mingi and wrap your arms around him, burying your face in his neck and letting out all your pain while trying your best to express your appreciation and gratitude. “Thank you.”

He holds you against him, squeezing you in a silent response and resting his head on top of yours. The two of you sway back and forth under the night sky, holding one another and grieving the losses you’ve both suffered, understanding the pain that lies within each of you. He was with you as your town was destroyed and raided. He was with you when you found your neighbors and parents dead, and you with him as he slowly found many of his crew dead as well. 

Life won’t be getting any easier, but at least now you have a place you know you can stay and a lifestyle that you are somewhat familiar with, even if you’ve never been on a ship until now. Neither of you knows what the next step is or how to fully recover from the losses, but you do know that you have each other, you have the group you rescued, and you have the Aurora. And for now, that’s all you can ask for.


End file.
